Ranking the all-time Chargers head coaches

News broke Thursday that the Chargers will fire coach Norv Turner and general manager A.J. Smith at the end of this season. Where does Turner rank on the list off all-time Chargers head coaches? Here's what we think ...

Chargers coaches rankings:

1. Sid Gillman

96-53-6 regular season; 1-4 postseason

All he did was revolutionize football, win the franchise's only championship and set the stage for the Chargers' love-affair with the city. Sir Sid was sensation.

2. Don Coryell

69-56; 3-4

We overlook him not making the Super Bowl, something that keeps him from the Pro Football Hall of Fame. Coryell, who advanced to two AFC title games, was the architect of the most exciting football teams to ever play.

3. Bobby Ross

47-33; 3-3

Boss Ross could be higher – maybe he should. He took the team to its lone Super Bowl while forging a winning attitude that was sorely missing when he arrived from Georgia Tech. The Chargers were a wreck when he came in, not so much when he was here.

4. Marty Schottenheimer

47-33; 0-2

What makes Schottenheimer's stint so stellar was he took over a team which had hit the skids. He brought respectability back and a toughness that has been missing since. Yes he couldn't win in the postseason. But Schottenheimer's teams were never called soft.

5. Tommy Prothro

21-39

No standout seasons; he finished as high as third twice, but no playoffs. He had a 2-12 stinker in 1975 and when he started 1-3 in 1978, he was shown the door in favor of Coryell.

6. Norv Turner

(53-38);3-3

For what so much is given, much is asked. He took over a 14-2 team and preceded to take it to the AFC title game the next season. But it's been a toboggan ride downhill since for a coach who wasn't popular when he was hired and hasn't been embraced any warmer since.

7. Mike Riley

14-34

GM Bobby Beathard went outside the box in naming Riley of Oregon State. He didn't do much as a head coach, although his 1-15 season in 2000 allowed the Chargers to draft LaDainian Tomlinson and Drew Brees. Riley, if nothing else, is No. 1 as the nicest guy ever to coach.

8. Al Saunders

17-22

An ambitious man who had the inevitable chore of filling Coryell's coaching cleats. His best showing was an 8-7 record in 1987, but it came in the strike year and he was gone after 1988.

9. Dan Henning

16-32

He was consistent: he went 6-10 his first two years. But when he compiled a 4-12 mark in Year 3, and that was enough for Beathard to look elsewhere, which led to Ross.

10. Charlie Waller

9-7-3

Waller went 4-1 after taking over for Gillman in 1969 after nine games. When he went 5-6-3 the following season, Gillman was recruited back to San Diego for the 1971 season.

11. June Jones

3-7

Took over for Gilbride when he was canned six games into 1998 and Jones could have coached the team in 1999. He was Beathard's first choice, but Jones couldn't turn down the University of Hawaii and said “aloha” to the NFL.